Restaurant Week Toledo kickoff party set for Feb. 19

Five days before Restaurant Week Toledo officially starts, a kickoff party will offer area residents the chance for an early taste of some of the menu items being offered by local restaurants.

Restaurant Week Toledo is set for Feb. 24 through March 2. The kickoff party will be 5:30-7:30 p.m. Feb. 19 at the Secor Building, 425 Jefferson Ave.

Although this will be the fourth year for Restaurant Week Toledo, it’s the first year for the kickoff party.

“The whole idea behind the event is to give everyone a taste of Restaurant Week Toledo,” said event co-chair Margot Estes. “It’s a great opportunity to get the word out so people get a sense of what it’s all about and are ready to go on the 24th. I think it’s going to really help punch up the success of the week. And that’s a win for everyone.”

Restaurant Week Toledo, presented by Medical Mutual, will feature dozens of locally owned restaurants, including venues in Downtown, Toledo, Maumee, Perrysburg, Swanton, Sylvania and Waterville. Each restaurant will feature a special menu priced at $10, $20 or $30. (Drinks, taxes and gratuities are not included unless specified.) Each restaurant will offer at least one “healthy choice” option. A portion of proceeds will benefit two of Leadership Toledo’s youth programs: Youth Leadership Toledo and Students in Action.

The kickoff party, sponsored by Hylant, will feature food samples from several of the Restaurant Week Toledo menus as well as craft beer and wine tastings. There will also be a raffle for a “Night Out on the Town” package and live entertainment will be provided by DJ Rob Sample.

Organizers have been wanting to do a kickoff party for a couple of years, Estes said.

“This year was finally the year to really pull this off and make it happen,” she said. “We’re really excited to see it come to life.”

Tickets are $25 and they are limited and selling fast, Estes said.

“Our ultimate goal is to sell out and I think we’re going to get there,” Estes said. “Don’t wait and try to get a ticket at the door.”

Among the food to be served at the kickoff event will be the Junkyard Dog and falafel salad from Burger Bar 419, spaghetti and meatballs from Caper’s, bacon-wrapped water chestnuts from ICE Restaurant and Bar, braised short ribs over wild mushroom risotto from La Scola Italian Grill, hummus and grape leaves from Beirut and Poco Piatti and baby lamb chops from Rosie’s Italian Grille. Also serving food will be Element 112 and Registry Bistro.

There will also be a coffee and dessert station, featuring pour-over Madcap Coffee from Plate 21, coffee and mini cinnamon muffins from Black Kite Coffee and petits fours from The Café at The Oliver House.

Burger Bar 419 has been part of Restaurant Week Toledo since the beginning and co-owner Tony House said it’s gotten bigger and better every year.

“It gets more popular every year,” House said. “It’s great to go out and taste all the flavors of restaurants you’ve never been to before but were curious about. It just opens people’s minds to different experiences within the city.”

House said he’s looking forward to the kickoff party, which will feature Burger Bar’s Junkyard Dog (all-beef frank with Dijon mustard, braised short ribs, bourbon-glazed onions and macaroni and cheese) and falafel salad (a patty of chickpeas ground with fresh parsley, onion, garlic and cumin, cooked and placed on romaine lettuce with olives, tomatoes, red onion and cucumber yogurt dressing).

“The reason we wanted to highlight those is because they are new to our menu. The falafel salad is one of the healthier options; the Junkyard Dog is just the opposite,” said House, laughing. “I think it will be great to have a party and get everybody teased a little bit on some of the food that will be offered.”

Sandy Spang, owner of Plate 21, also said she’s looking forward to the kickoff party.

“We think the pour-over method produces the finest quality cup of coffee we can make for customers and we love to show off our Madcap Coffee,” Spang said. “The kickoff should be a great community event and we’re excited to be a part of it. It’s going to be a chance to see what really diverse dining options Toledo offers and help people make plans for the coming week. It’s possible people will come to the kickoff party and try something and say, ‘Wow, I wouldn’t have thought of going to eat at that restaurant,’ and put it on their list. I think that’s an exciting idea.”

Estes also said she hopes the event will offer an opportunity to alleviate some wintertime “cabin fever.”

“It’s been such a long and dreary winter,” Estes said. “This will be just a really nice opportunity to come after work and mingle and see a little peek into what Restaurant Week is going to be like.”

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on Thursday, February 6th, 2014 at 7:36 pm and is filed under Community, Star.
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